The month of October seemed to fly past especially quickly this year, and with it went the first ever Sydney International Food Festival. For those not in Sydney, it’s a month-long festival celebrating great food, with plenty of opportunities to get involved. There are outdoor events, like the Danks Street Festival and the first ever Breakfast on the Bridge, as well as brunches, lunches and dinners at some of Sydney’s top restaurants. I didn’t manage to get to any of the ‘Lets do Lunch’ specials this year, and the my first visit to the Noodle Markets was a little disappointing, but what had me most excited was the Sugar Hits, held between 9-11pm every night for $20 including a glass of dessert wine or cognac.

With my two favourite dessert junkies, we decide to tackle two Sugar Hits in the one night, after a dinner of duck pizza and chicken wings at The Australian Hotel. The Macquarie Lounge in the Mariott Hotel was our first stop, a short walk from the Rocks on Pitt Street in Circular Quay. We were a little early, but the friendly waiter fixed us up with drinks, and then waited more than half an hour for our dessert plates to be brought out, which is surprising considering how quiet the Lounge seems to be on a Friday night.

It was described as a Valrhona Chocolate and Raspberry Symphony Delight – two slabs of chocolate mousse cake, one topped with a raspberry jelly compote, and the other with a chocolate glacage. There was also a mini chocolate macaron and a gorgeous pipe of tempered white and dark chocolate. The presentation was lovely but unfortunately the taste was not as impressive. The macaron was cold from the fridge, the chocolate pipe didn’t really taste like anything at all, and I’m very glad we shared two plates between three of us because I would never have been able to finish one by myself.

From there we scurried around the corner to the Four Seasons Hotel. The Sugar Hit was held in The Café by Kables, though it was hard to find a waiter and he looked a little dumbfounded when we only ordered one plate to share. They offered a Baked Chocolate Mousse with Mandarin Sorbet and Anis Seed Croquant, which looked amazing on the plate. The mousse was sinfully thick and rich, but while the sorbet tasted nice, I think the mandarin flavour didn’t quite stand up to the richness of the chocolate. The tiny cubes of jelly were a nice touch and the anis seed croquant added some texture and crunch, and was thankfully not too liquorice-y. Again, I am very glad we were sharing this, because the chocolate was so intense.

And with plates scraped clean, full bellies and sugar highs, we headed off. Maybe our expectations had been set a little too high, but these desserts didn’t quite deliver on taste. Nevertheless, I’m sure I will be back again next year, I can never say no to dessert. If you do want to go along, you only have a few days left so hurry down! Bookings are highly recommended.